research and development fund project spotlights

Promoting High-Performing Off-Grid Appliances | JUNE 2019 1

ENABLING TECHNOLOGIES CALL OCTOBER 2020

EFFICIENCY FOR ACCESS COALITION

RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT FUND PROJECT SPOTLIGHTS

CONTENTS PAGE

ADILI SOLAR HUBSSOLAR POWERED ICE FLAKE MACHINE

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Page no.

ANGAZA AN OPEN-SOURCE SOFTWARE TO ALLOW COMMUNICATION BETWEEN OFF-GRID APPLIANCES

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GREEN EMPOWERMENTAN OPEN-SOURCE SOLUTION FOR SMARTER LOAD MANAGEMENT

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JIROGASY JIRODESK V2 - SOLAR POWERED COMPUTERS TO ENABLE DIGITALISATION IN THE OFF-GRID MARKET

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NADJI.BI SÉNÉGALCONNECTED COMMUNITY SOLAR PLATFORM FOR MILLET TRANSFORMATION

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NEOPENDAA WIRELESS VITAL SIGNS MONITOR FOR NEWBORN BABIES

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OMNIVOLTAICDEVICE DATA DISCOVERY AS A SERVICE

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OVO SOLAR MODULAR SOLAR POWERED EGG INCUBATOR FOR SMALLHOLDER FARMERS

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PEG AFRICAINNOVATIVE SOLAR-REFRIGERATION SOLUTIONS FOR WEST AFRICA

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POWERGEN RENEWABLE ENERGYEMPOWERING WOMEN THROUGH MINI-GRIDS AND ULTRA-EFFICIENT CHICKEN AND EGG INCUBATION

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POWERHIVETHE JERR-E-CAN: THE ENERGY STORAGE SOLUTION TO MAKE MICRO-GRIDS ECONOMICALLY VIABLE

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SIMUSOLARWIDENING COVERAGE: DEVELOPING AN INCLUSIVE, GENDER-CUSTOMISED MODEL FOR PRODUCTIVE USES OF ENERGY

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VILLAGE INFRASTRUCTURE ANGELSSOLAR WASHING MACHINE AND DRYING SYSTEM

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WALAHARNESSING THE SUN FOR AGRICULTURE

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Efficiency for Access Research and Development Fund Enabling Technologies Funding Call | 2020 – 2022

RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT FUND PROJECT SPOTLIGHT

This project will develop an integrated system comprising a

solar-powered ice machine with a water purification unit.

In fishing communities across Kenya, men are mainly responsible for

fishing, whereas women typically undertake post-harvest processing

of the fish. This involves drying, smoking or deep-frying the fish. In

doing so, the market value of fish decreases and this renders the fish

unexportable to overseas markets. Furthermore, large industries

based in urban centres manage the cold chain away from the fishing

communities.

By producing ice with clean water at the shore, Adili Solar Hubs aims

to bring cold chain management services to local areas, so that those

fishing can do so for an extended time. This will keep the harvested fish

fresh for longer, increasing the economic value of the fish.

The project will achieve this by developing an integrated system. This

will include a water purification unit, an ice flake machine, an off-grid

PV system and a smart controller. The smart controller will enable the

machine to be mostly powered by direct solar energy, thereby reducing

the need for large energy storage. The excess solar energy will power

the purification process of the remaining water in the tank. An online

remote monitoring feature will also alert the user and identify any

issues.

The project will benefit fishing communities in Kenya by reducing

post-harvest fish loss. It will also help to grow the fish market and

give women and youth involved in the fish trade around Lake Turkana

employment opportunities. A further benefit is that it will help increase

food security.

R&D AwardeeAdili Solar Hubs

Efficiency for Access Funding£53,323

R&D Funding Unlocked from Adili Solar Hubs £44,628

Project Location Kenya

AT A GLANCE

Efficiency for Access Research and Development Fund Enabling Technologies Funding Call | 2020 – 2022 1

ADILI SOLAR HUBSSOLAR POWERED ICE FLAKE MACHINE


This project will develop software that will allow off-grid

appliances to communicate with power generation systems

and cloud services securely. Angaza will release this as

an open-source product, will be available for new off-grid

appliances in development.

Given the increasing diversity of off-grid software and hardware in

the off-grid industry, it is challenging to ensure that products and

services are compatible. Angaza aims to address this problem by

developing secure, inter-device communication software to function

in an off-grid setting. This has the potential to transform the industry

by providing a common ‘language’ for off-grid products and services

to communicate with. The software will enable consumers to connect

off-grid appliances made by different manufacturers and access cloud

services of their choice.

Pay-As-You-Go (PAYGo) financing is a crucial tool in enhancing energy

access in off-grid areas. As consumers use more appliances, however,

it will be challenging for them to manage the energy requirements and

running cost of each product. Angaza will address this by introducing

software that will help manage multiple devices. The software will

collect performance data to detect and troubleshoot device problems

remotely. It will be compatible with smartphones, which will reduce

costs further for consumers. By implementing this software, appliances

will last longer and be cheaper to run. This will mean that consumers

can access more appliances.

Last-mile distributors will be able to detect problems and troubleshoot

devices remotely by collecting performance data from the consumer’s

appliance. This will result in more efficient and cost-effective

management of multiple PAYGo appliances for customers. The open

nature of the protocol will encourage device manufacturers to build

innovative functionality into their products in a standards-compliant

way. This will benefit the entire industry.

R&D AwardeeAngaza


R&D Funding Unlocked from Angaza£237,613

Project LocationsUSA, Africa

AT A GLANCE

Efficiency for Access Research and Development Fund Enabling Technologies Funding Call | 2020 – 2022 2

ANGAZA AN OPEN-SOURCE SOFTWARE TO ALLOW COMMUNICATION BETWEEN OFF-GRID APPLIANCES


n

This project will develop an open-source, mini-grid

management and optimisation tool. It will be released to

a network of developers working to benefit marginalised,

indigenous communities.

Off-grid environments present many challenges to electricity

providers. These include ensuring that power systems are affordable

for consumers and meet their energy demands. Many systems have a

power deficit during peak consumer hours and a large power excess

during off-peak hours.

Green Empowerment and regional partners in Southeast Asia are

developing a reliable communication link between the point of

power generation and consumer appliances. Local practitioners

can manufacture and install the low-cost, open-source device. It will

promote more efficient management of appliance power consumption,

which can help ensure reliable power generation.

By developing this technology, Green Empowerment aims to:

• Reduce power outages in peak hours and increase use of available

power in off-peak hours through smarter management of

productive appliances for household or small-scale industrial use

• Provide more up-to-date system monitoring technology to improve

preventative maintenance, fault diagnosis and optimise future

projects

• Evaluate financial strategy based on developed technology costs

such as PAYGo systems

• Introduce integrating sensors, which will help track environmental

factors that influence mini-grid efficiency, such as stream flow rates

R&D AwardeeGreen Empowerment


R&D Funding Unlocked from Green Empowerment£23,478

Project LocationUSA

AT A GLANCE

3

GREEN EMPOWERMENTAN OPEN-SOURCE SOLUTION FOR SMARTER LOAD MANAGEMENT



Jirogasy’s project focuses on inclusivity with the goal of

digitising all schools in off-grid areas across Madagascar and

Africa.

Computers currently available on the market are not energy efficient

and cannot be powered by solar home systems due to their high

energy consumption. While digital appliances such as radios,

televisions and fans are increasingly affordable and available on the off-

grid market, computers are falling behind.

Jirogasy is passionate about enhancing access to computers and digital

literacy, which will help improve educational equity across Africa. In an

increasingly globalised world, computers help people stay connected,

acquire knowledge, and enhance their employability. As a result, it is

important to help children use computers in schools across Africa.

By developing solar-powered computers, Jirogasy aims to reduce

inequalities between off-grid areas and the rest of the world. These

computers will help people in off-grid areas access widely available

digital information.

Having already built a first version of their computer, Jirogasy aims

to develop an all-in-one PC. It will combine a solar home system, a

motherboard integrated behind a Touchscreen, and a Pay-As-You-Go

module. A prototype will be deployed in schools for a pilot project.

Once the pilot is complete, Jirogasy aims to provide computer access to

over 10,000 students in Madagascar per year.

R&D AwardeeJirogasy


R&D Funding Unlockedfrom Jirogasy£12,322

Project LocationMadagascar

AT A GLANCE

4

JIROGASY JIRODESK V2 - SOLAR POWERED COMPUTERS TO ENABLE DIGITALISATION IN THE OFF-GRID MARKET



A connected solar platform with software to ensure a

sustainable business model for millet flour production.

After the production of millet, the flour production process goes

through two stages, dehulling and grinding, which are labour-intensive

for women and girls in rural areas.

The process involves removing the outer shells of the grains and then

grinding them with large mortars and pestles to produce flour. This

manual work is painful, time-consuming and can trigger muscular,

skin and respiratory diseases. Other methods of flour production for

off-grid areas involve diesel-powered machinery, which has negative

environmental and health impacts. Diesel-powered machinery can also

taint the flour.

Nadji.Bi Sénégal aims to develop a solar solution for millet flour

production, which will be connected and managed by a smart software

applications platform. This will enable a pain and pollution-free flour

processing solution, which can improve quality of life for women and

girls. It will also help farmers earn more income, as the solution will

help them to increase the value of their millet flour due to the improved

production process.

The platform will enable the digital management of customer flow

and payment, as well as the production and collection of technical

data to monitor the performance of the milling. Nadji.Bi Sénégal will

develop the platform with groups of rural women to ensure the service

is affordable and addresses their needs. The platform will be offered

as an investment to communities of women through microfinance

institutions and rural banks, which can help scale up the solution.

Photo Credit: Agsol

R&D AwardeeNadji.Bi Sénégal


R&D Funding Unlockedfrom Nadji.Bi Sénégal£74,842

Project LocationSenegal

AT A GLANCE

5

NADJI.BI SÉNÉGALCONNECTED COMMUNITY SOLAR PLATFORM FOR MILLET TRANSFORMATION



This project aims to pilot an affordable and wireless vital signs

technology in low-resource health facilities in East Africa. The

technology will continuously monitor the temperature, pulse

rate, oxygen saturation and respiration rate of critically ill

newborns.

Vital signs monitoring has the potential to improve newborn health

outcomes by providing health staff with early warning scores of a

patient’s declining status. This can help trigger more timely and

effective interventions. In low-resource settings, however, the

equipment required to monitor vital signs in critically ill newborns is too

expensive and difficult to maintain.

Neopenda’s neoGuard technology provides an affordable and

sustainable patient monitoring solution allowing clinical staff to monitor

up to 20 patients at a time from a central monitoring application hosted

on a tablet. They are also able to receive real-time visual and audio

alerts if any of the vital signs fall out of the acceptable range.

Incorporating feedback from over 400 health workers, Neopenda’s

technology has been designed to operate efficiently in dynamic clinical

settings. This includes potential space constraints, weak or interrupted

power supply and other infrastructure challenges.

The neoGuard technology has been in development since 2017 and

undergone two small-scale pilot studies to test for safety and accuracy.

Neopenda’s project aims to assess neoGuard’s feasibility in the real

world and evaluate its preliminary efficacy on 600 newborns. The

system will be introduced in six to eight health facilities in Kenya,

Tanzania and Uganda.

R&D AwardeeNeopenda


R&D Funding Unlockedfrom Neopenda£49,784

Project LocationsKenya, Tanzania, Uganda, USA

AT A GLANCE

6

NEOPENDAA WIRELESS VITAL SIGNS MONITOR FOR NEWBORN BABIES



The project will develop easily discoverable hardware-to-

cloud link, enabling remote data collection and sharing for any

device in the off-grid sector.

There is a high demand for data in the off-grid sector. Moreover, there

is also a need to standardise technology components for them to be

compatible with various cloud services that obtain data. This data

will help appliance distributors and power operators in addressing

analytical or operational requirements.

Omnivoltaic’s project will deliver a piece of hardware that will be

suitable for mini-grids, off-grid appliances, and PAYGo systems.

Omnivoltaic will develop its own apps that will use cloud data and help

developers to find innovative ways to enhance user experience. For

example, geo-tracking can prompt e-mobility users to seek the nearest

location where they can charge their batteries. Climatic data can also

be integrated with irrigation pumping devices.

This project aims to create a more general framework that links off-

grid technologies in rural areas to cloud storage. The framework

will allow its users to access data easily. Omnivoltaic’s project will be

both scalable and cost-effective, promoting interoperability in the

off-grid sector. This will help to advance the market and establish

standardisation to enable easy access to data.

R&D AwardeeOmnivoltaic


R&D Funding Unlocked from Omnivoltaic£78,954

Project LocationHong Kong

AT A GLANCE

7

OMNIVOLTAICDEVICE DATA DISCOVERY AS A SERVICE



This project will develop a modular, Pay-As-You-Go enabled

solar-powered egg incubator. This will allow farmers to

scale their hatchery production as they grow their poultry

businesses.

Climate change is making it harder for farmers to rely solely on seasonal

crop harvests, as crops are often affected by extreme weather patterns.

Enhancing livestock production could significantly improve farmers’

resilience by diversifying their income.

OVO egg incubators can help address the global food security

challenge faced by smallholder farmers. The company will adapt their

current base egg incubator unit and develop egg tray modules, which

can be stacked on top of the base unit. Farmers will be able to install

each egg-tray-module incrementally, increasing the total unit capacity

as each module is added.

The incubator will automatically regulate temperature, humidity and

air exchange and integrate Internet of Things (IoT) hardware. This IoT

integration will record unit performance data including temperature,

humidity, CO2 levels and the condition of the battery and panel.

The data collected will help to optimise performance and return of

investment for the end-user. The IoT hardware will integrate with Pay-

As-You-Go GSM hardware and software.

The egg incubator will be sold with PAYGo financing, meaning farmers

can initially make a small down payment and then make monthly

payments until their incubator is paid in full. This will enable farmers to

use their incubator appliance to generate further income and re-invest

their profit by purchasing additional egg tray modules.

This project will include manufacturing 10 trial units for poultry farmers

in Kenya. Its objective is to gain insight into the unit’s performance in-

field and collect end-user feedback, which will inform future product

development.

R&D AwardeeOVO Solar


R&D Funding Unlockedfrom OVO Solar£11,052

Project LocationsCanada, China, Kenya

AT A GLANCE

8

OVO SOLAR MODULAR SOLAR POWERED EGG INCUBATOR FOR SMALLHOLDER FARMERS



This project will develop affordable solar refrigeration

solutions for women working in commercial settings, which

will help them earn income. This includes fisherwomen and

traders who sell perishable goods without access to affordable

and reliable refrigeration.

PEG Africa decided to pursue this project following surveys in 2019 that

revealed refrigeration solutions were one of the top four appliances that

customers wanted. Follow-up surveys and visits indicated that there

is demand for both fridges and freezers. However, there is a limited

understanding of business models, supply chains, economies of scale

in manufacturing and demonstrating a strong value proposition to

small businesses.

To address this, PEG Africa will pilot refrigeration solutions that address

market demand and enable a stronger understanding of the rural

refrigeration value chain needed to operate at scale.

PEG Africa foresees that the project will predominantly benefit small

female-led businesses. The project aims to combine refrigeration

solutions with an affordable financing plan. This will allow female

entrepreneurs to access high-quality refrigeration products and

services easily. This will help small businesses in Ivory Coast and

Senegal to earn more money.

R&D AwardeePEG Africa


R&D Funding Unlockedfrom PEG Africa £107,596

Project LocationsIvory Coast, Senegal

AT A GLANCE

9

PEG AFRICAINNOVATIVE SOLAR-REFRIGERATION SOLUTIONS

FOR WEST AFRICA



This project will develop and deploy ultra-efficient egg

incubators for productive use, targeting mini-grid users who

are primarily women in Tanzania.

In Tanzania, raising poultry is culturally associated with women. It

also helps give women more income control and a stronger voice in

household decision making.

PowerGen Renewable Energy is working to pilot an ultra-efficient egg

incubator with existing mini-grid customers. The project will target

female poultry farmers and measure the social and economic impacts

of egg incubators as mini-grid compatible productive use appliances.

A pilot of 70 incubators will be produced and deployed. The majority

of customers will be women, who will be selected through phone

surveys and focus groups. A mobile education service will be set up

for customers to receive support and information on how to use the

incubator. The success of the project will be assessed through ongoing

monitoring and evaluation. A socio-economic impact analysis will

allow PowerGen to assess the impacts of the project and its effects on

women’s livelihoods.

The project aims to prove that egg incubators can help improve the

livelihoods of women living in rural areas. It also aims to support the

mini-grid business model by increasing the income of and energy

demands of mini-grid customers.

R&D AwardeePowerGen Renewable Energy


R&D Funding Unlocked from PowerGen Renewable Energy£ 88,775

Project LocationsKenya, Tanzania

AT A GLANCE

10

POWERGEN RENEWABLE ENERGYEMPOWERING WOMEN THROUGH MINI-GRIDS AND ULTRA-EFFICIENT CHICKEN AND EGG INCUBATION



R&D Awardee Powerhive


R&D Funding Unlocked from Powerhive £98,875

Project Locations Kenya, United Kingdom

AT A GLANCE

11

POWERHIVETHE JERR-E-CAN: THE ENERGY STORAGE SOLUTION

TO MAKE MICRO-GRIDS ECONOMICALLY VIABLE

The project will create an hourly rental service to make electric

vehicles more viable with mini-grids, with a focus on women

as the beneficiaries. Each electric vehicle will be powered by

a ‘’Jerr-e-can’’, a swappable, energy efficient battery. An app

will also be developed to help those living in rural areas access

cheap and clean energy.

This project will offer an hourly rental service for electric ‘boda bodas’

and three-wheelers vehicles. The vehicles will be powered by a Jerr-

e-can, a 72V, energy efficient battery that can be charged by mini-

grids or solar home systems. Jerr-e-cans are also swappable. By using

Jerr-e-cans, this project helps make electric vehicles cleaner and more

economically viable. The project aims to make 20% of customers

female drivers. These vehicles will help women transport water over

long distances, which is a time-consuming, daily task.

Powerhive will also develop an app for the rural marketplace, which will

enable rural communities to purchase excess electricity when prices

are low. Ultimately, using the battery and app will encourage the use of

more efficient mini-grids, which will benefit all stakeholders. It will also

help to make appliances more accessible to off-grid communities. For

example, the app will help rural farmers purchase cheaper electricity to

power solar water pumps.

Since COVID-19, Powerhive has seen an increase in demand for vital

services such as cooking, electricity and mobility. As a result, Powerhive

has decided to expand the scope of the marketplace app in this project

to include other appliances such as cookstoves.



This project will expand Simusolar’s IoT (Internet of Things)

platform by allowing women farmers working off-grid

and off-network to benefit from solar-irrigation systems

and financing. It will aim to expand this approach to other

productive use technologies.

Smallholder farmers, especially women, often face challenges

accessing improved agricultural techniques, inputs, affordable

technologies, finance, and markets. This is especially true of farmers in

off-network areas. Climate change impacts, including unpredictable

rain patterns, negatively affect smallholder farmers’ income, as it

becomes more challenging to maintain their crops.

Simusolar will test an innovative syncing method, named ‘PAYGo

Bridge’, which will use smartphones integrated with Simusolar

irrigation systems. It will act as a communication bridge between off-

network farms and on-network villages where farmers travel to buy

and sell products. Using this proven technology, Simusolar will be able

to obtain information on pump use and provide appropriate, value-

add services back to farmers, regardless of where they operate. This

platform will address affordability, access to information and climate

resilience for predominantly female smallholder farmers. The project

will be delivered in off-grid and off-network areas.

A combination of hardware, software, and a gender-customised

business model will help Simusolar’s successful PAYGo Platform to

become more accessible. This will enable further productive uses of

energy, particularly solar water pumps.

R&D AwardeeSimusolar


R&D Funding Unlockedfrom Simusolar£230,031

Project LocationsTanzania, United Kingdom

AT A GLANCE

12

SIMUSOLARWIDENING COVERAGE: DEVELOPING AN INCLUSIVE, GENDER-CUSTOMISED MODEL FOR

PRODUCTIVE USES OF ENERGY



The project will develop energy efficient washing machine

and dryer centres. The dryers will be multi-purpose, with the

ability to dry crops, clothes, and dehydrate food for long-

term storage. This will be done by incorporating improved

cookstove and DC electric fan technology.

Existing solar home systems are limited in their ability to deliver power

to appliances with high-energy requirements over long time peroids.

As a result, productive use of appliances cannot be used at a high

capacity, which means that tasks must be completed manually. This

includes washing clothes. As a result, one billion women across the

globe spend 100 billion hours laundering by hand.

Village Infrastructure Angels are working to adapt a washing machine

and dryer to become energy efficient. The company’s research showed

that spinning clothes is one of the most power-intensive tasks for a

washing machine. This project aims to develop a cost-effective and

efficient spinning process for off-grid washing machines and dryers.

Village Infrastructure Angels will further develop its prototypes into

pre-commercial products in a trial of four washing and drying centres

established in Cambodia, Indonesia and Kenya.

R&D AwardeeVillage Infrastructure Angels


R&D Funding Unlocked from Village Infrastructure Angels£35,000

Project LocationsCambodia, Indonesia and Kenya

AT A GLANCE

13

VILLAGE INFRASTRUCTURE ANGELSSOLAR WASHING MACHINE AND DRYING SYSTEM



This project will pilot a holistic support solution that will

distribute high-quality solar irrigation equipment to

smallholder farmers in Malawi.

In Malawi, land is often the only resource of economic value that rural

households have own. Over 80% of the population lives in rural areas

and depend on subsistence agriculture for their livelihoods. However,

agriculture is a highly water-intensive practice. There are also water

rights in Malawi, which restrict farmers’ access to the water they need.

This affects the livelihoods of Malawian women who make up 50% of

the country’s agricultural workforce.

Irrigation can compensate for agricultural water deficits, but it

requires a regular energy source. Only 10.8% of Malawi’s population is

connected to the grid and only 1% of people in rural areas has access to

energy.

Wala works with farmers and focuses on productive use solar

technologies for agriculture. The company’s pilot project in Malawi will

provide farmers with holistic support solutions including:

• Pay-As-You-Grow financing connections to financing partners to

help save and access soft loans for technology and farm inputs

• Contract farming which will ensure secure and consistent revenue

(This will also enable the farmers to pay for Wala Ltd equipment)

• Training on how to use and maintain solar technologies, good

agriculture practices and business skills related to farming

Wala will use its efficient and affordable irrigation technology,

expertise, and guidance on agri-business to help support smallholder

female farmers.

R&D AwardeeWala


R&D Funding Unlocked from Wala £184,179

Project Location Malawi

AT A GLANCE

14

WALAHARNESSING THE SUN FOR AGRICULTURE


Promoting High-Performing Off-Grid Appliances | JUNE 2019 16

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